Back from the Motherland

Three weeks later and we're back!  We had a great time in the Philippines--had a lot of experiences, saw a lot of beautiful places, and bonded with a lot of family.   Happy to be back in the comforts of home now-- where I have a sense of time, can drink ice cold beverages, can go out without bug spray, take a long hot shower, can eat a salad and fresh veggies, and use my iphone &internet freely.   Makes me realize how lucky we are to have simple things like that!...often taken for granted for sure!  

This trip was a little different than all the other trips back to PI.  This time I was old enough to appreciate everything.  On prior trips I was like 14 and 21, respectively--both times I remember talking on the phone and going out with friends was my priority.  Like, "ugh, wonder what my friends are doing. I wanna go  home" kinda attitude, haha.  At the age now where I could really appreciate getting to know my family...appreciating all the luxuries we have at home compared to there....and just being in the moment.  

So, going back to work tomorrow--I am totally dreading it because I feel like I forgot how to work and stay awake at night.  I am also trying really hard to watch my diet, exercise, &limit my drinking cuz I feel totally fat/disgusting from the trip:(  Not cool at all!  

Anyways, I took tons of pictures. Thought I'd share a few each time I blog...

This photo was taken before heading to the P.I.  We hiked Mariner's Ridge.  Little did we know, this would be one of the last times before PI that we could be physically active (aside from swimming) on our trip.

This is a photo where we visited our Tatang.  Said a small prayer for him. We love and miss you!

Our first meal at Darayonan Resort in Coron, Palawan.  We stayed here for about 5 days.  Every morning we ate tapsilog, had a cup of instant Nescafe, and started our days around 6 am.  They have "brown outs" during peak hours of the day..meaning no electricity, no water, no AC, no cold drinks...nothing! Very humbling to say the least, learning to deal with it--but definitely worth seeing this paradise:)

Spent our first evening poolside.  The only choice we had--it was soo hot! & no electricity or water.  We drank the typical San Miguels and got semi-drunk.  First time seeing Mom and Dad swimming in the pool in a long time.  They used to take us every weekend at 32nd pool base we were young; consequently, all of their daughters are water lovers!

This is on our boat. We were lucky enough to get our own boat tour for just our family.  That is Tatay in the back, along with Raffy "the silent sea warrior"  and "OJT"--we called the little boy who was on the job training:)  Random story:  one day we ran the boat into shallow water over the reefs, and the propellor broke.  Tatay in the back said he's been saving for a long time to buy a new one....Dad did the kindest thing and gave him the 3000 pesos he needed to buy it.  It was theee nicest gesture, made his day and MY day! lol, love to see nice things happen.  Tatay, who reminded us a lot of our Tatang Lucio,  had a cheesy smile on his face the rest of the day...amazing!!!:)

No words can describe and no pictures can justify really how beautiful this place was!

Snorkeling was so so so so so so amazing.  Soo much live coral and abundant fish---I hope it doesnt get ruined in the future. By far, the best snorkel experiences we had were in Coron...hands down.  This was taken with my little underwater Sony, cool yeah?

This was our first actual stop.  Bulog island.  We were so excited and took tons of photos here..little did we know, it was just the tip of the iceberg.  I remember looking around like WOW.   Wow wow wow, soak up the feeling and the moment. Wish I could rewind back in time!

Ok I could go on forever with more pics..but wanted to share this last one!  This is Raffy the silent sea warrior.  Yeah, we made that last part up. Because he truly was!!  I've been around a lot of water people especially here in Hawaii, but this guy is something else.  If you look closely at his right foot, that is a handmade fin...yes, just a piece of wood with some bands.   Just one foot, lol.  But this guy was free diving the deepest of waters...coolest grand finale of our boat trip was when he dove I have no idea HOW deep but DEEEEP below...and snatched an unsuspecting turtle and swam it back to us.   Who does that?!!!!! A man of few words, but impressive nonetheless! (We tipped them big time).

Hope you enjoyed! Will definitely share more in the future! Aloha.

January 2013

At the end of January..and I can't believe how fast the month has went by!!

This month has mostly consisted of:
1) Renting a new house
2) Moving into the new house
3) Getting a puppy!!!!

So we moved in second week of January. It was such a pain in the ass. Me and Mike bought forearm forklifts...and basically, it just sucked! Next time Im paying however much it costs to hire movers...and I also plan on just staying in this place for a while!  It's not bad..feels a lot cozier, plenty of storage, cheeaper, and less dustier. Our other house was so dusty bc all the wind would just blow dirt off the freeway into our house, so it was soo time consuming cleaning that house.  Our previous landlords gave us hassles about the yard maintenance in the old house too, so we also had to put in a lot of time and effort before moving in fixing the yard, growing the grass, trimming the hedges--and that yard was bigger than the whooole house!! OMG, soo over it and glad we moved out. That occupied me literally the first half of January :/

Since our new lease allowed dogs, I was so very anxious to get a puppy. Part of me wanted to wait til I got back from PI, but part of me was too excited and couldnt wait!  Mike said he kind of wanted one to have around when I went to PI, so everyday I was practically obsessing..looking online (I think I knew every dog for sale on this island) Lol.  I saw Koko listed for a while in a litter of 4 puppies, but Mike said she looked to furry....and then one Sunday she was listed as the "last puppy left!" Ahh!! & it was practically love at first sight. She was super mellow, sweet, and cuuute!

So this past week has been a lot of time spent with her.  First day was rough, a lot of crying and adjusting. I was a little nervous about what I got us into because of all the attention she needed!!  But after that, everything has been great. She is super smart--she has already learned to sit, fetch, to use potty pads, and to sleep in her crate without crying for hours at a time. So we are stoked:) Cant wait til her immunizations are done so we can take her for walks and force her to like the beach, LOL.

So with all that, havent had much time for anything else.  Went out maybe twice this month?? Lol!  Mainly because I've been trying to save cash for my trip to the Philippines which is like NEXT week!!!   Ahh! Honestly havent much time to get excited about it because Ive been so busy.  But we booked 1 week in Palawan, touring all the different islands and Im so excited to see it. & after that, we'll still have 2 more weeks of fun! & I get to see Inang! Yay!

Anyways, computers dying.  Probowl is tonight...I'll be working. But only 3 more days of work, and Im off for a month!!

Kaimuki

Ka imu kī.  meaning "The ti root oven" in hawaiian...meaning i live in an oven!

But I love it. It's been so much cooler though, as in 70 degrees, this winter so no more blasting the AC all day.   Well, I love my little bungalow but Mike and I have officially signed a new lease somewhere else...for many reasons, but the most important being to save money. We currently pay almost 2500 (a mortgage right?) for this place we live in now, but by downgrading to the "cottage" I shall phrase it, we could probably save 500-600/month.  The best part is that we can get small dog!!!!!! Super exclamation marks for that...but maybe not until I get back from PI.

So I'm excited! Its a little 2 bedroom/1 office/1 bath place up on a hillside in Kaimuki.  Overlooks diamond head, not at the base of it like my place now.  One year lease was signed, so I guess I'll be in Hawaii til 2014. Took a look at some of the real estate on this island, and gooood lawd--gotta be a millionaire to own something decent around here! No, thanks:)

So work has been unusually slow this winter, and because they hired so many travelers, the regular staff have been getting their hours cut. I've been getting cancelled at least one or two shifts a check..and when you only work six shifts--it's kind of a lot! Thank goooodness, I have like 200hrs of PTO to pull from or I would be struggling.  Saved so much PTO last year for this up and coming Philippines trip this February. Going with my family for about three weeks--planning on actually sightseeing this time and not just staying in the provinces. Excited for that..and excited to see Inang! Yay, I think I'll cuddle with her every night that I can because I miss her so much.

So I was supposed to work tonight..but here I am wide awake. Just finished doing laundry and packing a little suitcase for home this Weds.  Ahh, home for the holidays =) Planning on just borrowing all my sisters' winter clothes to stay warm..heheeeee!